Ship
The Ship is a Federation hero's primary asset in FTL: Faster Than Light. It houses Systems, Weapons, and Augmentations powered by its Reactor to safely carry a Crew across the galaxy. Each component of the ship can affect options available during events throughout the galaxy. Each ship now has 2 layouts. The second ship layout is unlocked by completing 2 of 3 ship specific achievements . Ships are flown out of the Federation Hangar. The first ship available to the Federation is the Kestrel. Additional ships are unlocked by completing objectives in the game. Crew Each ship can carry a maximum of 8 Crewmembers of various Races. Some crew will start out on board the ship, while others can be recruited at Stores or Random Events. Crewmembers gain skill through experience at various ship tasks: Piloting, Shield Recharge, Engineering, Weapons, Repairs, and Combat. Skilled crewmembers are a vital component of an effective ship. Reactor Each ship powers its Systems, Weapons, and Drones through a Reactor. The Reactor contains a discrete amount of Energy which can be allocated. Scrap can be used to upgrade the reactor to a maximum of 25 Energy bars. Strategic use of Zoltan crew members provides additional power. Playable Ships The following 9 ship classes are currently available in FTL: *Kestrel *Stealth Cruiser *Mantis Cruiser *Engi Cruiser *Federation Cruiser *Slug Cruiser *Rock Cruiser *Zoltan Cruiser *Crystalline Cruiser Kestrel : This class of ship was decommissioned from Federation service years ago. After a number of refits and updating, this classic ship is ready for battle. 'Layout A' *Default name: The Kestrel *Starting Crew: 3 Human *Starting Weapons: **Artemis Missiles **Burst Laser II *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **8 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) Unlock : The Kestrel is the first ship type available to you in FTL. 'Layout B' *Default name: Red-Tail *Starting Crew: 2 Human, 1 Mantis, 1 Zoltan *Starting Weapons: **Basic Laser (x4) *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **5 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) It is interesting to note that the color scheme of the ship matches that of the rebel ships. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Kestrel achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Have six unique aliens on the Kestrel Cruiser Simultaneously. *Have every system and subsystem installed on the Kestrel Cruiser at one time. *As the Kestrel Cruiser, repair back to full health when it only has 1 HP remaining. Stealth Cruiser : This ship is being built near the Engi homeworlds. To unlock it, you'll need to help them, but keep in mind they only trust their own kind. '' 'Layout A' *Default name: The Nesasio *Starting Crew: 3 Human *Starting Augmentations: **Titanium System Casing **Long-Range Scanners *Starting Weapons: **Mini Beam **Dual Lasers *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **0 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 3 Weapon, 2 Drone This ship is very difficult to use as it starts without Shields and the starting weapons are awful; however, the first layer of shields is sold in some stores for 150 scrap. For sectors 1-3, don't be afraid to run if the enemy proves overwhelming. '''Unlock' : To unlock the Stealth Cruiser, you must have at least one Engi crewmember. Warp to the Engi Homeworlds and find a warp zone where a small fleet of Engi ships are gathering. The node you are looking for does not have any special icons, so no distress beacon, and if you have the Long-Range Scanners augment, no yellow triangle indicating possible ships. Select the blue option available. : The Engi will present you with two quests to complete. However, one of them will be a dead end. You may complete both quests to get some rewards. But if you have already extracted information from the correct ship, then you don't need to pursue the other ship and can warp straight to the last quest point. The choice to finish the battles off or let them go will also not affect the reward. See the Engi Fleet Discussion Random Event. : 'Layout B' *Default name: DA-SR 12 *Starting Crew: 2 Human, 1 Zoltan *Starting Augmentation: **Long-Range Scanners *Starting Weapon: **Glaive Beam *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **0 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 3 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) Note that the medbay has two crew slots instead of three, there are no shields, and its engine room is half the usual size. Strategy : The Layout B Stealth Cruiser starts with one of the best weapons in the game, the Glaive Beam. If the enemy's shields are down, the Glaive Beam can do 12-15 damage (3 damage per room X 4-5 rooms) in a single shot (depending on the enemy ship layout) and has a chance of lighting enemy rooms ablaze. Early on, you'll need to rely on your cloak to avoid damage (which starts at level 2 and should be upgraded to level 3 as soon as possible). In the first couple sectors, you should be able to kill most ships with one shot, so your goal should be to avoid as much damage as possible until you get your shot off. For ships that have shield strength one, start your beam in their shield room: the subsequent rooms will take full damage. Once you get through the first few sectors, focus on taking down the enemy shields. The Glaive Beam will do the rest. Note that the engines only have 2 bars. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Stealth Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Destroy a ship at full health during a single cloak in the Stealth Cruiser. (Using drones is permitted.) ::Note: The exploding animation MUST complete DURING the cloak for the achievement to count. With level 1 cloak, it is only possible against a rebel AI scout very early on in the game, even with the default weapons you get. Against any other ship it is almost impossible without at least level 2 cloaking. *In the Stealth Cruiser, avoid 9 points of damage during a single cloak. ::Note: you can't get this achievement if you have shields up. Turning off your shields temporarily works, though. *In the Stealth Cruiser, get to sector 8 without jumping to a beacon with an environmental danger. Nebulas don't count as hazards for this achievement, plasma storms do though. Mantis Cruiser : The famous Mantis thief, KazaaakplethKilik, owns this ship. You'll have to "convince" him to help you. 'Layout A' *Default name: The Gila Monster *Starting Crew: 3 Mantis, 1 Engi *Starting Augmentation: **Mantis Pheromones *Starting Weapons: **Small Bomb **Basic Laser * Starting Resources: ** 16 Fuel ** 16 Missiles ** 0 Drone parts *Slots: 3 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) The Mantis Cruiser is one of the few ships that have no starting Sensor on board, which makes getting information of your ship status difficult. It is possible to buy a Sensor system if you find one in a store. Unlock : The Mantis Cruiser ship class is unlocked by facing KazaaakplethKilik in the Mantis Homeworld. Long range sensors will show a ship detected there. Before the encounter you must have a Level 2 Medbay and a Teleport (a Mantis crew member is not required). When you encounter the thief, follow these steps: *Attack or hail him (both result in a fight) *Defeat the ship without destroying it *(Teleporter) Quickly teleport additional crew and check for survivors. *(Adv. Medbay) Quickly teleport him back to the medbay. *''Note that if you take too long to kill the enemy crew, KazaaakplethKilik will die from his wounds.'' **The accompanying message is, "It seems almost a waste for such a fierce foe to die in such an anticlimactic fashion. You shrug it off and take what you can." *''Note that if you don't have a level 2 medbay, KazaakplethKilik will tell you where his stash is and then die, you will not unlock the cruiser.'' : To unlock the Mantis ship, The ship must not be destroyed. 'Layout B' *Default Name: The Basilisk *Starting Crew: 2 Mantis *Starting Augmentation: **Mantis Pheromones *Starting Drones: **Boarding Drone **Defense Drone I *Slots: 3 Weapon, 2 Drone This ship starts a teleporter, a drone control, and two layers of shields, but lacks weapons. The Mantis Cruiser Type B has the rare four-person teleporter room, conveniently located next to the med bay. Strategy : With 2 shields, it's unlikely that many enemies early on will be much trouble. If the enemy has missiles, use the defense drone if you send your entire crew over. A missile to the teleporter room could quickly end your journey if the enemies are too strong. And for AI and zoltan-shielded encounters, just pop a defense drone if needed, and wait until you can jump away. Taking them on with boarding drones is impractical and not worth it early on, unless it is the AI variant with doors linking the 5 rooms. Focus on getting crew and weapons as early as possible, so that AI and manned ships are nothing to you. This ship is extremely powerful later in the game if you chose to board frequently. Just be careful not to lose 4 crew members to a fleeing ship or forgetting to turn off your cannons. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Mantis Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Kill the crew of 20 ships by sector 6 in the Mantis Cruiser. *Kill 5 enemy crew in a fight without taking hull damage or losing a crew member while using the Mantis Cruiser. *While using the Mantis Cruiser, kill the last enemy with your last crew member on their ship. Engi Cruiser 'Layout A' *Default name: The Torus *Starting Crew: 2 Engi, 1 Human *Starting Augmentation: **Engi Med-bot Dispersal *Starting Weapon: **Ion Blast II *Starting Drone: **Anti-Ship Drone I *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **0 Missiles **15 Drone parts *Slots: 3 Weapon, 3 Drone Unlock : To unlock this Engi ship, you just need to get to the 5th sector. Strategy : With shields and a non-lethal weapon, if you happen to find yourself up against a non-threatening (carrying only a non-piercing beam weapon, or one single-shot laser), non-retreating target in the early game, you can spam your crew member's skills, if you're so inclined. Set your Ion Blast to autofire into the enemy ship, position your crew members in the room you'd like them to gain skill in, and walk away. It is possible to completely level every member of your crew in every possible discipline (weapons, shields, engine, and piloting) this way. The potential early game 20% evasion bonus is a huge, debatably gamebreaking benefit. 'Layout B' *Default name: The Vortex *Starting Crew: 1 Engi *Starting Augmentation: **Drone Reactor Booster *Starting Weapons: **Heavy Ion **Heavy Laser I *Starting Drones: **Anti-Personnel Drone **System Repair Drone (x2) *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **0 Missiles **6 Drone parts *Slots: 3 Weapon, 3 Drone Unlike the first layout there is no sensor onboard, although your drones can give you vision as well as crew. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Engi Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *With the Engi Cruiser, have 3 drones functioning at the same time. *With the Engi Cruiser, destroy an enemy ship using only drones (no weapons). *Have 4 enemy systems or subsystems ioned at the same time while using the Engi Cruiser. Federation Cruiser : Beat the boss to unlock this advanced Federation cruiser. 'Layout A' *Default name: The Osprey *Starting Crew: 1 Human, 1 Mantis, 1 Rockman, 1 Engi *Starting Weapons: **Burst Laser II *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **5 Missiles **2 Drone parts *Unique Ability: Artillery Beam *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) This is the only ship with the artillery beam system. Cannot install cloak system. Strategy : The Artillery Beam ignores shields and does a lot of damage, so it is a good idea to strengthen the defenses (shields/engines) and let it do the work. This needs patience, but is worth the wait. If possible, destroy the enemy's missiles promptly, as they bypass shields and hence pose a threat to the hull. Unlock : This cruiser is unlocked by beating The Rebel Flagship in The Last Stand sector on either difficulty. 'Layout B' *Default name: Nisos *Starting Crew: 1 Human, 1 Slug, 1 Zoltan *Starting Weapons: **Dual Lasers **Leto Missiles *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **9 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Unique Ability: Artillery Beam *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) The med-bay only contains two slots for healing. Cannot install cloak system.. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Federation Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Use only the Artillery Beam to destroy an enemy ship, without taking any hull damage. *While using the Federation Cruiser, use your crew in 4 special blue event choices by sector 5. *Get to sector 5 in the Federation Cruiser without upgrading your weapons system.(You may still upgrade your Artillery Beam) Slug Cruiser 'Layout A' *Default name: Man of War *Starting Crew: 2 Slug *Starting Augmentation: **Slug Repair Gel *Starting Weapons: **Anti-Bio Beam **Breach Bomb I **Dual Lasers *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **5 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) You begin with the Anti-Bio Beam, which usually takes 2 hits to kill an enemy crew member, 4 if the enemy crew member is a Rockman. There is no sensor aboard this ship. However, Slugs can see the rooms they are adjacent to, and the locations of enemies onboard their vessel. Strategy : The weapon systems equipped on the default Slug Cruiser are designed to kill enemy ship crews. The Breach Bomb (which uses a missile) does good personnel damage and damages systems but does no hull damage. The Anti-Bio Beam does heavy damage to crew (it takes two hits to kill a human) but none to hull or shields. The Dual Laser (with its two shots) should be used to temporarily disable shields, with the Anti-Bio Beam being fired immediately afterwards. This will allow the Anti-Bio Beam to bypass shields without having to destroy the enemy Shield room first. If both Dual Laser shots hit, you can successfully engage ships with two shields with the default weapon loadout. Ion weapons can be a good supplement to the Slug's arsenal. Caution is advised, however - this strategy doesn't aim at either the helm (to reduce their mobility) or weapons (to reduce their offensive power). Patience and a decent shield will be your best weapon with this strategy. Unlock : To unlock this Slug Cruiser, you must: *Have either Sensors Rank 2 or a Slug crew member. *Go to the Slug Home Nebula (Purple Sector) *Slug Home Nebula Surrender Some Slug ships will surrender once hurt in exchange for what's in their stores. One of them will have an experimental weapon (Anti-Bio Beam), Instead, ask for some data. You get a quest marker. *At the new quest beacon, choose to tail the enemy ships instead of trying to go charging in, then choose whichever Blue option you have. You'll get in a fight where the enemy is powering up FTL to get away. Kill the crew and congratulations, you get the Slug Cruiser. If you destroy the ship, there is a chance to not unlock the ship. 'Layout B' *Default name: The Stormwalker *Starting Crew: 3 Slug *Starting Augmentation: **Slug Repair Gel *Starting Weapons: **Healing Bomb **Artemis Missile *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **25 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) The Stormwalker starts with a teleporter but lacks a medbay, resulting in reliance on the healing bomb to heal crew members, which in turn uses missiles. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Slug Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *While using the Slug Cruiser, have vision of every room of the enemy ship without functioning sensors. *Jump to 30 nebula locations before sector 8. *While using the Slug Cruiser, kill 3 enemy crew members with one shot from the Anti-Bio Beam. Rock Cruiser '' Prove yourself to the rockmen to earn this powerful cruiser.'' 'Layout A' *Default name: Bulwark *Starting Crew: 3 Rockmen *Starting Augmentation: **Rock Plating *Starting Weapons: **Artemis Missile **Hull Missile *Starting Resources: **16 Fuel **28 Missiles **0 Drone parts *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) Unlock : Encounter a Rock Assault ship in the Rock Homeworlds (Red Sector). They will question your intentions, and you need to say that "We're going to save them (The Federation) or die trying." : A quest beacon will appear. Survive this encounter until the ship warps to a nearby beacon or the next sector, in order for the ship to do this, you need to make sure not to destroy his engines or piloting system. You may attack any other section of the ship without destroying the ship entirely, or killing the entire crew. You will get a quest beacon in either the current sector or the next one. Go there to unlock the ship (and get a free Rock Plating augment for your current ship). 'Layout B' *Default name: Shivan *Starting Crew: 4 Rockmen *Starting Augmentation: **Rock Plating *Starting Weapons: **Pierce Laser Mark I **Fire Bomb *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) This ship has NO initial door system. Although one can be bought later with the B layout, it's important to note that no doors lead outside the ship, and thus cannot be opened to vent oxygen. Strategy : The pierce laser makes this ship more than a match for most early enemies you encounter. There are many ways to play this ship, but making use of the fire bombs is especially fun. They are ridiculously powerful when used correctly. To do this, you'll need a teleporter ASAP. Once you have the teleporter, firebomb a high-priority room, and once the charge goes off, teleport 2 rock crewmembers into the burning room. If your enemies aren't rock people, they will take damage from the fire while you fight them, as well as the system in the room. Systems cannot be repaired if they are on fire, and fires cannot be put out if your crew is there. When you start encountering ships with med bays, these will be top priority. Enemies exhibit very strange behaviors sometimes when their ship is on fire. As a result, the achievement for killing a burning enemy crew member can be extremely difficult to get, although the crystal lockdown ability makes this easier. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Rock Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Ship Achievements' *Have your crew kill a burning enemy on their ship. *Destroy an enemy ship with a defense drone using only missiles. *Discover the secret sector using the Rock cruiser. Zoltan Cruiser 'Layout A' *Default name: The Adjudicator *Starting Crew: 3 Zoltan *Starting Augmentation: **Zoltan Shield *Starting Weapons: **Halberd Beam **Leto Missiles *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) Unlock : Go into the Zoltan Homeworlds and wander around until you find a normal beacon with an Unarmed Zoltan Transport that you need to "hear out". They will then give you a quest marker in the same or next sector. : Upon arrival at the quest beacon, a rebel ship closes in fast saying "you're not getting away this time". Choose to hail it and then say: "Perhaps there could be a reconciliation of our ideals without war?", and finally "True progress can only be achieved without bloodshed". 'Layout B' *Default Name: Noether *Starting Crew: 3 Zoltan *Starting Augmentation: **Zoltan Shield *Starting Weapons: **Ion Blast (x2) **Pike Beam *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) This ship starts with only one shield upgrade, requiring 100 scrap to get the first shield bar. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Zoltan Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Destroy a ship before it gets through the Zoltan Shield. *With the Zoltan Cruiser, have 29 power in systems at the same time. *Get to sector 5 without upgrading your reactor in the Zoltan Cruiser. Crystal Cruiser '' Travel to an unknown sector of the galaxy to find this powerful vessel.'' 'Layout A' *Default name: Bravais *Starting Crew: 2 Human, 2 Crystal *Starting Augmentation: **Crystal Vengeance *Starting Weapons: **Crystal Burst Mark I **Heavy Crystal Mark I *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) Unlock : This ship is found by first acquiring the damaged stasis pod at a distress beacon in a pirate, Engi or Rock sector and then managing to bring it to the Zoltan Research Facility, found in Engi and Zoltan sectors. Take the blue option to look at the capsule, and you will have the chance to have a Crystal being on your crew. He will then direct you to a quest in the Rock Homeworlds where you must find the warp point that gives another blue option. : Note: The first event will be a Distress signal - it will be debris in an asteroid field that will not show up as an asteroid field on the Long-Range Scanner. The second (research station) appears to only be in empty space, without a distress beacon. The third event will never have a distress beacon. : Note: This is -very- annoying achievement wise to unlock considering you need 3 random events to all happen in the same order (find stasis pod, find research beacon, find rock homeworld, find unmarked beacon in rock homeworld- its very easy to land in the homeworld and not be able to find the wormhole to crystal sector), and its possible for the rock homeworld to not even be on your map (making it impossible to unlock the ship on that run). : Tips: Start with the Rock Cruiser (or the Stealth Cruiser - The Long Range Scanners really help to find the right spaces to check!) and hit all the distress signals you can find in Engi and Zoltan sectors. As you hop around the map, prioritize your path to get adjacent to as many beacons as possible to find said distress signals. If you have Rock Plating , it will have a blue option to guarantee success at the asteroid field. Then prioritize engi/zoltan sectors. You'll need to find an "empty" space that doesn't have a ship/distress signal in it (the Long-Range Scanners augmentation helps here). Once that is found, cross your fingers and hope that one Hostile sector is the Rock Homeworlds . Once in the homeworld stay away from distress signals and beacons with ships and pray! 'Layout B' *Default name: Carnelian *Starting Crew: 3 Crystal *Starting Augmentation: **Crystal Vengeance *Slots: 4 Weapon, 2 Drone (requires system) This ship starts with level 1 cloaking, a 4-person teleporter room, and''' no starting weapons'. '''Strategy' : The only thing you can do is board enemy ships. To do this without taking damage, you have to be fast. Beam 2 of your crew into the enemies' weapons room and lock it down with your Crystal Being power before the enemy crew enters the room. To get more time, use your stealth as soon as the enemy ship fires its weapons. You should be able to take down their weapon systems without taking any damage and beam in your third crew member to combat the enemy crew. The Crystal B is probably the easiest ship to board The Rebel Flagship with since there are three Crystal crew to lockdown the med-bay with and that gives you time to smash the med-bay. Unlock : Achieving 2 of the 3 Crystal Cruiser achievements will unlock Layout B. 'Achievements' *Destroy an enemy ship with a shard from the Crystal Vengeance augment (achievement unique to the Type A Crystal Cruiser although both have the augment). *While using the Crystal Cruiser, trap 4 enemy crew in a single room using the Crystal Being power or a Lockdown Bomb. *Destroy 15 Rock Ships (pirates count) using the Crystal Cruiser. 'Ship Comparisons' * Costs for any subsequent upgrade levels are as normal